Badminton in Arabic
Ustazah Alaa · November 10, 2026 · 3 min read
Quick Answer
Badminton in Arabic is الرِّيشَة الطَّائِرَة (ar-rīsha aṭ-ṭāʾira), which literally means "the flying feather". You will also hear the borrowed word بَادْمِنْتُون. These are Modern Standard Arabic (MSA) words, the Arabic of sports news and commentary.
Introduction
In November 2026, the Kumamoto Masters Japan put Malaysian shuttlers back in the headlines. Badminton is one of the most popular sports in Malaysia, so how do you talk about it in Arabic?
If you want to learn Arabic for everyday life, sports and hobbies make easy conversation topics. Here are the six words that matter most, with sentences to practise.
How do you say "badminton" in Arabic?
| Arabic | Pronunciation | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| الرِّيشَة الطَّائِرَة | ar-rīsha aṭ-ṭāʾira | badminton |
| لَاعِب | lāʿib | player (pemain) |
| مُبَارَاة | mubārā | match (perlawanan) |
| مِضْرَب | miḍrab | racket (raket) |
| مَلْعَب | malʿab | court (gelanggang) |
| فَوْز | fawz | win (kemenangan) |
الرِّيشَة الطَّائِرَة: رِيشَة means "feather" and طَائِرَة means "flying". The feather is the shuttlecock.
ā, ī and ū are long vowels, ḥ is a soft breathy "h", ṭ and ḍ are heavy sounds, dh is like "th" in "this", and ʿ is a deep sound from the throat.
What useful sentences can you use?
| Arabic | Pronunciation | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| أُحِبُّ الرِّيشَةَ الطَّائِرَةَ. | Uḥibbu r-rīshata ṭ-ṭāʾira. | I love badminton. |
| هَذَا لَاعِبٌ مِنْ مَالِيزِيَا. | Hādhā lāʿibun min Mālīziyā. | This is a player from Malaysia. |
| الْمُبَارَاةُ فِي الْمَلْعَبِ الْكَبِيرِ. | Al-mubārā fī l-malʿab al-kabīr. | The match is in the big court. |
| أَحْتَاجُ إِلَى مِضْرَبٍ جَدِيدٍ. | Aḥtāju ilā miḍrabin jadīd. | I need a new racket. |
| فَازَ اللَّاعِبُ بِالْمُبَارَاةِ. | Fāza l-lāʿibu bi-l-mubārā. | The player won the match. |
Can you follow a short dialogue?
- أَحْمَد: هَلْ تُحِبِّينَ الرِّيشَةَ الطَّائِرَةَ؟ (Do you like badminton?)
- سَارَة: نَعَمْ، أَلْعَبُ كُلَّ أُسْبُوعٍ. (Yes, I play every week.)
- أَحْمَد: لِنَلْعَبْ مَعًا! (Let's play together!)
- سَارَة: فِكْرَةٌ جَيِّدَةٌ! (Good idea!)
Did You Know?
لَاعِب and مَلْعَب share the root ل-ع-ب, which is about playing. A player plays, and a court is "a place of play". You can explore more word families like this in Rooto.
Summary
- Badminton = الرِّيشَة الطَّائِرَة.
- Player = لَاعِب; match = مُبَارَاة.
- Racket = مِضْرَب; court = مَلْعَب; win = فَوْز.
FAQ
Can I just say بَادْمِنْتُون in Arabic?
Yes, it is widely understood, especially in speech. الرِّيشَة الطَّائِرَة is the Arabic term you will see in writing and sports reports.
Which Arabic should I learn for everyday life?
It depends on your goal. MSA is best for reading news and sports reports, like the words in this post. When friends chat about a match, they use their own dialect, so many learners add one, such as Syrian/Levantine Arabic.
Keep Learning
Not sure whether to start with MSA or a dialect? Read Syrian Dialect vs MSA: What Should You Learn?.
To chat about sports and hobbies in everyday Arabic, a teacher can help you speak with confidence. LangPage offers live Arabic lessons on Zoom with me, either one-to-one or in the small-group Arabic Kickstart program. You can see all the Arabic courses on the classes page.
Sources: The Star.